Establishing Appropriate Cut Scores of a Standardized Test for a Local Placement Context

Various approaches help determine students' need for language support courses. Some programs use standardized language proficiency test scores, which are available from the admissions process; others use local placement tests, which are typically designed to be aligned with local language needs and ESL course curricula. Using local placement tests may be more defensible, but sufficient resources to develop, administer, and score valid assessments are often not available. Another approach is using standardized test scores to screen out students with a high likelihood of passing the local placement test, followed by local placement tests for students who need further evaluation. This approach has potential for placements with limited use of resources, but little research has been conducted on its effectiveness. This study aimed to determine the extent to which appropriate cut scores for a standardized test (TOEFL iBT Speaking) could be used to identify students who would have a high likelihood of passing the local English Placement Test of Oral Communication (EPT OC), which was designed to determine the need for taking an oral communication course. Teacher judgments of 136 students placed in the oral communication class indicated that only five did not need it. A TOEFL iBT score of 22 was found to be a reasonable cut score for exemption from the oral communication class.